Project-Pathfinder

5th Grade: Colonization of America

Our fifth graders are currently studying early American colonization. They will be learning about the reasons for colonization as well as the three areas of colonization and what makes them alike and different. They will learn about life in the colonies, as well as major products and professions from each of the areas (New England, Middle, and Southern Colonies.)

Missouri Standards addressed (GLEs):
SS 3a C 5: Outline the discovery, exploration, and early settlement of America.
SS 5 C 5: Identify human characteristics, such as people's education, language, diversity, economies, religions, settlement patterns, ethnic background and political system.
SS 5 H 5: Identify major patterns of population distibution, demographics and migrations in the United States
http://dese.mo.gov/divimprove/curriculum/GLE/documents/cur-ss-gle-0907.pdf

• eThemes http://ethemes.missouri.edu
  • Colonial Kids: A Celebration of Life in the 1700's
    • Student created ThinkQuest focusing on life in the 1700s.
  • A Colonial Family and Community
    • Become a history detective to locate clues to answer the questions about colonial life.
  • Colonial Williamsburg
    • Learn about the clothing worn in Colonial Williamsburg.
  • I found eThemes to be a great resource when looking for resources. I was able to view many sites that would be helpful in finding information for 5th graders on Colonial America. It was nice having suggested grade levels on the sites to ease searching for appropriate materials.

• IPL2 (Internet Public Library and Librarians’ Internet Index) http://www.ipl.org/div/subject/index.html
  • Colonists and Native Americans
    • Great resource for primary documents from colonial America.
  • Colonial America
    • IPL Pathfinder with many links to sites and resources.
  • The Lost Colony
    • Educational Resource to companion The Lost Colony theater. Lots of history links to learn about the colony of Roanoke.
  • I found this site a little difficult to use to search for elementary appropriate websites. It is good for general use, but I don't think I'd use it without a lot of extra time to research the sites.

• Sweet Search 4 Me (for elementary students) http://4me.sweetsearch.com/
  • The 13 Colonies of America: Clickable Map
    • Clickable map to learn about each of the Thirteen Colonies.
  • MrNussbaum.com -13 Colonies
    • Website with a variety of resources about the Thirteen Colonies. It includes a variety of maps.
  • Colonial America (1492-1763) - America's Story from America's Library
    • Many stories about the Thirteen Colonies. Includes biographies of many famous colonists.
  • This site was fairly easy to navigate, but I wish it would be more appealing for kids to use as a search engine.

• Virtual Learning Resources Center http://www.virtuallrc.com/
  • U.S. History
    • Detailed information and articles about each of the colony groups.
  • The 13 Colonies Photos
    • Images of buildings from the each of the 13 Colonies. Includes homes, government buildings, and schools.
  • HIstory of British Colonial America
    • Gives a brief history of colonization from 1607-1754,
  • I had to do quite a bit of searching to locate websites that were related to my topic and appropriate for 5th graders.

• netTrekker d.i. (JCKL database)
  • Map of Early Settlement Centers in Colonial America
    • Clickalble map that allows students to view areas of colonization during different time periods.
  • Open Door Web Site: Other Colonies
    • Brief synopsis of each of the Thirteen Colonies.
  • Kidport Reference Library: The British Colonies
    • Learn about the reasons for colonization as well as locate other books and resources on the American Colonies.
  • I found this database very easy to use and locate good information. I really liked the fact that the sites can be teacher and student recommended and that many had a readability level on them. I would definitley use this again to locate information.